α-Amination of Carbonyl Compounds by Using Hypervalent Iodine-Based Aminating Reagents Containing a Transferable
Daichi Okumatsu1, Kazuki Kawanaka1, Shunpei Kainuma1
1Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Yamadaoka 2-1, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.
Abstract:
Hypervalent iodine-based aminating reagents containing a transferable (diarylmethylene)amino group can be used for the α-amination of simple carbonyl compounds such as esters, amides, and ketones in the presence of a lithium base. The (diarylmethylene)amino groups of the products can be readily modified, thus providing access to primary amines and diarylmethylamines. The developed method features transition-metal-free conditions and a simple one-pot procedure without the need to prepare enolate equivalents separately, thus offering a general and practical approach to the synthesis of a wide variety of α-amino carbonyl compounds. Experimental mechanistic investigations indicate that this amination proceeds through a unique radical coupling of an α-carbonyl radical with an iminyl radical; they are generated through a single-electron transfer between a lithium enolate and the hypervalent iodine reagent.
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